Firm fined for offences related to burning, discarding of waste
A Watson Lake company has paid $60,000 after being charged with violating the Environment Act.
A Watson Lake company has paid $60,000 after being charged with violating the Environment Act.
Northern Enviro Services (NES) was convicted of two offences under the Environment Act relating to the burning and discarding of solid waste without a permit.
According to a news release from Environment officials, in January 2019, officials at the Department of Environment received information from the public about burning activities observed on a property in Watson Lake.
After receiving this information, officers from both Environmental Compliance and Inspections, and Conservation Officers Services began an investigation.
Investigating officers determined Northern Enviro Services was disposing of solid waste by incineration, as well as discarding solid waste in contravention of the Environment Act, Solid Waste Regulations and Air Emission Regulations.
The release stated, “Open burning of solid waste poses significant health risks to the public and natural environment. Pollutants in smoke from burning solid waste include dioxins, furans, arsenic, mercury, PCBs, lead, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides and hydrochloric acid.”
NES pleaded guilty to one offence each under the Solid Waste Regulations, O.I.C. 2000/11 and Air Emissions Regulations, O.I.C. 1998/207.
Following a joint submission to the court, NES was ordered to pay a total penalty of $60,000.
This includes a total fine of $8,000 and two contributions of $26,000 to the Turn in Poachers and Polluters (TIPP) and the Recycling Fund.
No one from the department was available to the Star before press time this afternoon to provide more information about the case.
Comments (12)
Up 8 Down 7
Woodcutter on Apr 29, 2021 at 12:11 am
@jc lol - I do operate a business and have for over 3 decades. The rules are there for a reason and you bring a good conservative stooge should be upholding the consequences of breaking rules.
For clarity, this business is in it for money and not for the good of the Yukon, please try to get your rose colored glasses off your nose or go spout your double standard for your next rally.
I am real happy, self employed, weeds legal. Harvest permits are easy to get for hi quality businesses and happy to share with you that the tax payer has never had to shell out a penny to a company such as this. I am even more happy to read this great news of the courts finally clamping down on self entitled behavior such a LF engages in. It's no doubt you would think this is such a fine example of a human being.
So simmer down old timer and have a margarita, try not to get your nickers in a knot.
The world is great, and with strong enforcement, proportional consequences for breaking the law and 4 more years of a liberal government, things are only going to improve.
Up 12 Down 10
jc on Apr 28, 2021 at 2:32 pm
Woodcutter...you try operating a business in this police state...I know the operators too..and my characterization of them is the opposite of yours...sounds like you two got in a fight and you lost...they do a lot of good work all over the Yukon..and if it was not for their operations..a lot of contamination would not be dealt with in an effective and quick manner...you sound like a bitter old man? old woman?
Up 11 Down 2
Groucho d'North on Apr 28, 2021 at 11:41 am
This story reminded me that we are in a new fiscal year, so most of our permits and licenses must be renewed. So I dialed up the Fire permit page on the YG website to see if anything had changed. Like most of the new YG website, it is quite scant on useful information like what you can or cannot burn. Sharing information to the public is not this government's strong suit, but they are diligent in handing out fines.
https://yukon.ca/en/apply-burn-permit
Up 12 Down 9
Woodcutter on Apr 28, 2021 at 8:54 am
A search of the business name shows the principle owner of this business, as registered in the Watson Lake Chamber of Commerce web site.
From my own personal interactions with this woman, which was never positive, leads to rejoice at the penalties dished out. You can imagine at this level of sentencing, the behavior involved more then burning some soiled toilet paper.
This self entitled, scion of a Yukon Party member, entitled child of the largest civil contractor in Watson Lake, earned every bit of this sentence. It's without any doubt that this rouge company charged massive amounts to her customer to remove harzardous waste, then attempted to dispose of the waste in a manner that showed how self entitled she sees herself.
You earned it LF , but now like a good conservative, your gonna play the victim. It would appear you got support from the typical gang of right wing nuts here. They're always blaming the liberals for everything.
Up 9 Down 8
Woodcutter on Apr 27, 2021 at 7:03 pm
Right on, at least this is an example of real consequences for belligerent disrespect towards are children's environment. Why couldn't some jail time be added cause obviously it's all about the money and with all the local transfer stations available to dispose solid water safely there us no excuse for this behavior.
This should serve as an example to all those who place their greed before the health of our communities. If you're too stupid to adhere to decent behavior, you will be held accountable.
Up 17 Down 4
BnR on Apr 27, 2021 at 1:17 pm
General Public: why doesn't the government enforce laws!??!?!
Also General Public: why did they enforce THESE laws and fine people so much?!?!?
Up 22 Down 18
Max Mack on Apr 27, 2021 at 11:03 am
$60,000 for a minor administrative offence?
Nobody died. Nobody was injured. No animals died. No animals were injured. The purported risks in this case are generalized and theoretical, not proven.
This is not justice. This is an administration drunk with its own power.
But, trucking waste to the Whitehorse landfill is ok?
Up 14 Down 8
motive unclear on Apr 27, 2021 at 9:06 am
"At the point we have now reached with our legal structure effectively disabling the productive class to the point of virtual paralyses, the time has come to put our cabbages in gear so to speak and find the ways and means of survival in a legally brutish world, which demonstrates daily how little it cares about the greatest law of all, simply doing to others what you would have them do to you."
Up 24 Down 3
Vern Schlimbesser on Apr 26, 2021 at 6:33 pm
The Yukon Government officials have decided to close as many rural dumps as possible, despite local use or need. And they have laws against dumping or burning that they enforce from time to time.
Meanwhile the City of Whitehorse has refused to accept waste containers from outside of City limits.
This makes sense to someone inside Government (kind of reminds me of their decision a couple of years back to lock the garbage cans at all the rest stops to save money.)
Johnsons Crossing, Silver City, and all you others just need to move into town and your problems are solved.
(PS- expect to be homeless)
Up 28 Down 11
Dave on Apr 26, 2021 at 5:38 pm
Thank goodness that the government garbage burning police were on the job, I feel safer already knowing that criminal activity such as this is followed up on. I wonder how many employees it took to investigate the bonfire? Meanwhile the courts continue to let killers and drug dealers off the hook and you can’t get a cop to investigate a break and enter to save your life. The system certainly has its priorities.
Up 55 Down 16
Groucho d'North on Apr 26, 2021 at 3:34 pm
Another example of government-speak designed to be obtuse.
Solid waste: was it old timbers, or old tires, or a mountain of cardboard?
Still it is better than saying 'stuff' - but not by much.
Up 39 Down 10
So that's what was caught on Apr 26, 2021 at 2:22 pm
Doesn't mean that's ALL that they did.